In the 1800s a man named Michael Faraday did experiments in electromagnetism. His experiments eventually led him to the creation of the first electric motor. It was a pretty simple motor with no practical use, but it was a start. And it laid the foundation for all electric motors that were to come.
In 2015, we rely on many different electric motors every day. They’re found in so many of the things we use, that it would be hard to imagine life without them.
Here are 10 things that wouldn’t exist if Faraday hadn’t created that first motor:
#1 Treadmills
Trying to lose weight? Without the brushed DC motor found inside your treadmill, you might actually have to go outside to run. If it’s snowing, that may not be quite so fun.
#2 Electric Vehicles
Going to the golf course? That golf cart that shuttles you from one end of the course to the other sure comes in handy. But without the DC motor inside, you might have to get out and push.
#3 Blenders
The protein shake you made this morning would have been a lot harder to blend without the universal AC-DC motor inside your blender. It does all the hard chopping and mixing so that you don’t have to.
#4 Fans
When the rooms in your house start to feel a little warm, it’s nice to be able to switch on a fan and feel the cool breeze as it whips across your face. Without the induction motor inside, you’d be forced to pull out a handheld fan and do all the hard work yourself.
#5 Printers
Need to print out a document from your computer? Long gone are the days of the human powered printing press. The stepper motor inside your printer allows it to quickly spit out whatever information you need.
#6 Vacuum Cleaners
That clean carpet you love so much would be just a little bit trickier to clean if it weren’t for the universal motor that it has inside. Keeping your floors dirt and dust free would be much more of a chore.
#7 Clocks
Tick-tock, tick-tock… Want to know what time it is? Without synchronous motors, you might have to wind that clock by hand. Instead, you can just throw in the batteries, and let a motor do all the hard work.
#8 DVD Players
Planning to watch the 7th season of Friends on DVD tonight? Without the brushless DC motor inside your DVD player, you’d instead be forced to gather all your friends together to do an in-person reenactment.
#9 Power Tools
Doing some home improvement? That power drill you’re using wouldn’t quite be the same without the universal motor inside. You’d have to put a lot more elbow grease into your drilling.
#10 RC Cars
Having a fun day with the kids? That RC car they love wouldn’t work without the brushless DC motor inside. They’d be stuck pushing their cars around by hand and “imagining” it could move by itself. Woo hoo!
Michael Faraday’s first electric motor had a profound impact on the development of the technology we use and take for granted today.
So just remember that every time you find yourself using one of the 10 items on this list, you have Michael Faraday to thank for the role he played in bringing about the electric motor.
At Gabrian International we’re making use of “Faraday’s law,” discovered in 1831, to produce everything from hand wound toroids to 200KV power transformers.
We’re trusted by some of the most widely recognized brands in the world, and most manufacturers can’t match the wide range of products we offer. Contact us to see how we can help you with your magnetics manufacturing.